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Restoring two jewels of the Barrens http://www.philly.com/philly/news/local/13889436.html
By Edward Colimore
Inquirer Staff Writer
They need some work and lack the fancy amenities of today's houses.
But there's no denying the historic charm of the two mansions tucked away in the Pinelands - even though they need a few million dollars' worth of nips and tucks.
Atsion, an 1826 Greek Revival mansion built by Philadelphia entrepreneur Samuel Richards, is getting a $1.2 million face-lift.
And Batsto, a nearby 1784 mansion that was later remodeled and expanded by Philadelphia industrialist Joseph Wharton, is receiving a $2.9 million makeover.
Both projects in the Wharton State Forest are expected to be completed this summer, when the houses will be reopened for public tours.
"About 25 percent of the work is finished at Atsion and about 10 percent is done at Batsto," said Dana Loschiavo, spokeswoman for the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry of the Department of Environmental Protection, which is overseeing the project.
Walking through the mansions today, "you wonder what it was like back then, how you would have acted in that time period," said Ed Mulvan, the project manager for the upgrades at the mansions. "It's interesting to see how [houses and technologies] evolved over the years."
Dan Campbell, historian for Batsto village and the Atsion site, said the houses were built near two iron furnaces.
"There were about 24 [such operations] across South Jersey," said Campbell. "They helped lay the foundation for America's Industrial Revolution, which would catapult the United States to superpower status."
Atsion, on Route 206 in Shamong Township, has remained a kind of time capsule from 1826, while Batsto was upgraded by later owners in the late 1870s.
Samuel Richards, the operator of the Atsion furnace along the Mullica River, intended the house to be a summer home. He and other businessmen who lived in mansions near iron-making operations were "like Virginia gentry," Campbell said.
The workers at Atsion "made pig iron and iron products such as hinges on trunks, and cannon and musket balls," Campbell added. "They also made water pipes for Philadelphia."
After Richards died in 1842, the property was passed through his heirs and eventually sold to another Philadelphia merchant, Maurice Raleigh. His family was the last to use the mansion as a residence.
Joseph Wharton purchased the property in 1892 and used the mansion for packing and storage for his cranberry production. The state acquired the site in 1955.
"When [the restoration] is completed, it will be very nice," said Mulvan. "There are many original paints in the building, and we can match them. That's rare."
The work will focus on the mansion's Greek Revival architecture and calls for a new roof and a 610-square-foot porch around the west side of the house.
Eight marble fireplaces remain in the mansion, each in good condition and featuring an iron fireback made at the Atsion furnace.
"We just have to clean and fix them," Mulvan said. "We're also working on the flooring, especially in the lower-level kitchen where there are brick and wood floors."
The restoration plans avoid adding modern conveniences such as plumbing, and provide only enough electricity to light the building and power smoke detectors.
In nearby Hammonton, the 32-room Batsto mansion on Nesco Road is receiving a more high-tech treatment than Atsion, mirroring, in a way, the history of the site itself.
In the late 1870s, Batsto had the latest features: indoor plumbing, gas fixtures and an early fire-extinguishing system on two floors, said Campbell.
Today, it's receiving a new geothermal heating and air-conditioning system with humidity control to protect historic elements and artifacts.
The mansion is in the heart of Batsto Village, an iron- and glass-making center from 1766 to 1867. The village includes 33 historic structures, from a gristmill and sawmill to a general store, post office and workers' dwellings.
The oldest part of the big house was built in 1784 by William Richards, an ironmaster who had 19 children. One of them was Samuel Richards, who later built Atsion.
Another son of William Richards', Jesse, and Jesse's son, Thomas, later owned the house before it was purchased in 1876 by Joseph Wharton, who developed the property into a gentleman's farm.
Wharton expanded and remodeled Batsto in the elegant and then-popular Italianate style. One of its most striking features is a square, four-story tower. Fourteen rooms, including the parlors, dining room, library and bedrooms, were open to the public for tours until renovations began in the fall.
"The people who lived at Batsto had all the amenities that were available at the time; it was on the cutting edge of technology," said Campbell. "Wharton spent $40,000 on the renovations in 1878, and that was a great deal of money for the time."
Besides adding the heating and air conditioning system, workers at the mansion will repoint brick chimneys, and clean and repair the wood-shingle roof as well as remove and replace metal roofs over the mansion's tower and main porch.
Other plans include the replacement of wood clapboard siding, repair of exterior trim, windows and shutters, and painting of the entire mansion. Interior finishes including walls, ceilings, wainscot, trim, windows, doors and wood floors will be restored, too.
"There is so little of our past actually preserved," Loschiavo said. "I think people feel connected when they see something that has been brought back to the way it was.
"They appreciate the connections to their roots and are curious about how people lived in the past."
By Edward Colimore
Inquirer Staff Writer
They need some work and lack the fancy amenities of today's houses.
But there's no denying the historic charm of the two mansions tucked away in the Pinelands - even though they need a few million dollars' worth of nips and tucks.
Atsion, an 1826 Greek Revival mansion built by Philadelphia entrepreneur Samuel Richards, is getting a $1.2 million face-lift.
And Batsto, a nearby 1784 mansion that was later remodeled and expanded by Philadelphia industrialist Joseph Wharton, is receiving a $2.9 million makeover.
Both projects in the Wharton State Forest are expected to be completed this summer, when the houses will be reopened for public tours.
"About 25 percent of the work is finished at Atsion and about 10 percent is done at Batsto," said Dana Loschiavo, spokeswoman for the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry of the Department of Environmental Protection, which is overseeing the project.
Walking through the mansions today, "you wonder what it was like back then, how you would have acted in that time period," said Ed Mulvan, the project manager for the upgrades at the mansions. "It's interesting to see how [houses and technologies] evolved over the years."
Dan Campbell, historian for Batsto village and the Atsion site, said the houses were built near two iron furnaces.
"There were about 24 [such operations] across South Jersey," said Campbell. "They helped lay the foundation for America's Industrial Revolution, which would catapult the United States to superpower status."
Atsion, on Route 206 in Shamong Township, has remained a kind of time capsule from 1826, while Batsto was upgraded by later owners in the late 1870s.
Samuel Richards, the operator of the Atsion furnace along the Mullica River, intended the house to be a summer home. He and other businessmen who lived in mansions near iron-making operations were "like Virginia gentry," Campbell said.
The workers at Atsion "made pig iron and iron products such as hinges on trunks, and cannon and musket balls," Campbell added. "They also made water pipes for Philadelphia."
After Richards died in 1842, the property was passed through his heirs and eventually sold to another Philadelphia merchant, Maurice Raleigh. His family was the last to use the mansion as a residence.
Joseph Wharton purchased the property in 1892 and used the mansion for packing and storage for his cranberry production. The state acquired the site in 1955.
"When [the restoration] is completed, it will be very nice," said Mulvan. "There are many original paints in the building, and we can match them. That's rare."
The work will focus on the mansion's Greek Revival architecture and calls for a new roof and a 610-square-foot porch around the west side of the house.
Eight marble fireplaces remain in the mansion, each in good condition and featuring an iron fireback made at the Atsion furnace.
"We just have to clean and fix them," Mulvan said. "We're also working on the flooring, especially in the lower-level kitchen where there are brick and wood floors."
The restoration plans avoid adding modern conveniences such as plumbing, and provide only enough electricity to light the building and power smoke detectors.
In nearby Hammonton, the 32-room Batsto mansion on Nesco Road is receiving a more high-tech treatment than Atsion, mirroring, in a way, the history of the site itself.
In the late 1870s, Batsto had the latest features: indoor plumbing, gas fixtures and an early fire-extinguishing system on two floors, said Campbell.
Today, it's receiving a new geothermal heating and air-conditioning system with humidity control to protect historic elements and artifacts.
The mansion is in the heart of Batsto Village, an iron- and glass-making center from 1766 to 1867. The village includes 33 historic structures, from a gristmill and sawmill to a general store, post office and workers' dwellings.
The oldest part of the big house was built in 1784 by William Richards, an ironmaster who had 19 children. One of them was Samuel Richards, who later built Atsion.
Another son of William Richards', Jesse, and Jesse's son, Thomas, later owned the house before it was purchased in 1876 by Joseph Wharton, who developed the property into a gentleman's farm.
Wharton expanded and remodeled Batsto in the elegant and then-popular Italianate style. One of its most striking features is a square, four-story tower. Fourteen rooms, including the parlors, dining room, library and bedrooms, were open to the public for tours until renovations began in the fall.
"The people who lived at Batsto had all the amenities that were available at the time; it was on the cutting edge of technology," said Campbell. "Wharton spent $40,000 on the renovations in 1878, and that was a great deal of money for the time."
Besides adding the heating and air conditioning system, workers at the mansion will repoint brick chimneys, and clean and repair the wood-shingle roof as well as remove and replace metal roofs over the mansion's tower and main porch.
Other plans include the replacement of wood clapboard siding, repair of exterior trim, windows and shutters, and painting of the entire mansion. Interior finishes including walls, ceilings, wainscot, trim, windows, doors and wood floors will be restored, too.
"There is so little of our past actually preserved," Loschiavo said. "I think people feel connected when they see something that has been brought back to the way it was.
"They appreciate the connections to their roots and are curious about how people lived in the past."
